Spurs' Kaboul ruled out of France squad for Euro 2012

James Mariner
Tuesday 15 May 2012 22:20 BST
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The Tottenham Hotspur defender Younès Kaboul will miss next month's European Championship after being left out of the provisional France squad because of a knee injury.

The centre-back was sidelined for three weeks last month but returned to start Spurs' final four matches of the season, before being substituted late on in Sunday's victory over Fulham.

The France coach, Laurent Blanc, revealed the 26-year-old would miss the tournament in Poland and Ukraine before announcing a 26-man squad. Blanc decided to include midfielders Yoann Gourcuff and Alou Diarra despite their poor form for Marseilles and Lyons respectively. France take on England in the opening match of Group D in Donetsk on 11 June.

Elsewhere, in Group D, Sweden have also named their 23-man squad for the tournament, including Blackburn's Martin Olsson, West Bromwich Albion's Jonas Olsson and Sebastian Larsson, of Sunderland. Manchester City striker John Guidetti was omitted because of a thigh injury. "I'mterribly disappointed," the 20-year-old said. "The Euros were the big goal and it's sad not to get that chance."

Vicente del Bosque has named an experimental squad for Spain's upcoming friendlies with Serbia, South Korea and China, with a number of top names absent. Players from Barcelona, Chelsea and Athletic Bilbao have been omitted from the holders' squad owing to involvement in this weekend's Champions League final and next week's Copa del Rey final, giving a number of fringe players the chance to stake claims for places. The three clubs provided 15 players for Spain's most recent friendly.

The Real Betis midfielder Benat Etxebarria is included, along with Real Madrid's Raul Albiol. "I have incorporated players that have had a good season," Del Bosque, the Spain manager said. "We have to think about those that can be helpful to us in the future."

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